THE ONLY PARAGRAPH YOU NEED TO READ TODAY: One of Washington’s top parlor games is whether President Obama “wants the accomplishment” or “wants the issue” on immigration: Does he really want to sign a bill? Or does he think that if Republicans are denied the cover that an ambitious immigration package would provide with Hispanics, the GOP could become a minority party for the foreseeable future? This is one of the few Washington mysteries that has an unambiguously correct answer: Top Dems tell us that if President Obama is going to have a big legacy accomplishment this term, it has to be immigration. There’s not going to be a fiscal grand bargain. There are no signs a comprehensive gun-control package is feasible. So the president wants immigration to pass, and is making this an historic test of whether his campaign machinery can translate to governing. Although it’s hard to see how immigration gets through a House full of members from bright-right districts, the change in mood and tone on the right – led by Sen. Marco Rubio’s shrewd taming of conservative talk-show hosts -- has been swift and stunning. The biggest threat to passage lies in the decision by the White House and the Senate’s bipartisan “Gang of 8” to go with a big bill instead of chewable bites. That approach, which Rubio opposed less than two months ago but now has endorsed, could kill the issue in the House.

--JIM MESSINA, Obama campaign manager and now chair of the successor group, Organizing for Action, blasts the 20-million-plus list, with subject line, “Are you ready to get this done?”: “Add your name in support of the President's plan for immigration reform today. … [I]f we stick together, and keep at it, we can accomplish something truly historic. President Obama is ready to fight for it.” http://bit.ly/11cO1No

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--RUSH LIMBAUGH, who announced opposition to the Senate plan on Monday, said yesterday after interviewing Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.): “Even Reagan was fooled by the first amnesty bill. … Yesterday we had to get rid of our guns. Today we gotta grant amnesty. … They're running the no-huddle offense on us. We don't even have time to catch our breath. They're running play after play after play. … [But] the thing about Rubio and his interview here, … the reason he was praiseworthy and the reason I was excited about it, is it is an issue that's going to have to be dealt with at some point, and if Rubio can solve this in the way he set forth, it would be a good thing.” http://bit.ly/Wx7kCf

EXCLUSIVE: Playbook has obtained a text of the remarks by HENRY A. KISSINGER, accepting the Alflalfa Club’s nomination for president at the 100th annual dinner on Saturday. The dinner is one of Washington’s last elite events that isn’t televised, and speeches are off the record. In one of this town’s toughest crowds, Kissinger brought down the house: “I accept the nomination for President of the Alfalfa Party at this celebration of its hundredth anniversary. Its program, I am proud to say, has not changed one bit in the hundred years of its existence -- much like the Republican platform. President Obama used ‘Forward.’ My slogan is ‘Finally.’ … In my six decades of public service, I have given advice to 10 Presidents. Some of them even asked for it. I admit the opposing political machine is formidable and determined. But I am not intimidated. I have been around this track. I served on the Harvard faculty for over a decade -- I have learned how to handle socialists. Moreover, even those of you who have only pretended to have read my memoirs will acknowledge that I have gone toe-to-toe with some of the toughest leaders of the modern era. People often ask me what it was like meeting Brezhnev or Zhou Enlai. There is indeed a lot of pressure when historical figures encounter each other. So, yes: They were a little nervous.

“I pride myself on being able to see both sides of every issue. So let me candidly assess both my assets -- and my other assets. One of those assets is truthfulness. So let me be frank. Yes, I am in my 90th year. … Still, my mind has lost none of its proverbial acuity. Knock on wood. [Knocks on dais.] Who is there? … My campaign will … be fully transparent. I am herewith making available all my school transcripts and medical records. But before reporters come running, I should warn them that I store my records engraved on stone tablets for posterity … I have seen negotiations go on until talks broke down. When Joe Biden is your opposite number, talks go on until you break down. … I will see you all at my swearing-in ceremony. You will be there when I … place my left hand on my personal dog-eared copy of my memoirs.”

BILL GATES appears on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” at 8:15 a.m. to discuss his 2013 Annual Letter, “How We Measure Impact to Improve Lives: “This year, I concentrate on the power of clear goals and accurate measurement–simple concepts really–to improve the lives of the poorest people around the globe. It may not be the sexiest of themes, but the proof of its impact is undeniable. The lives of the poorest have improved more rapidly in the last 15 years than ever before. During that time, the number of people living in extreme poverty has been reduced by half–extraordinary progress in a short period of time. … Since Melinda and I started our foundation, I’ve seen how powerful measurement can be used as a tool to guide our work for the world’s poor. … The world can accomplish really big things when we unite around clear goals and develop the measurements to gauge progress.

“One of the best examples of how that works is the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that the UN set in 2000. The MDGs are a set of eight specific goals that are an unprecedented global effort to meet the needs of the world’s poorest by 2015. While we won’t reach all of the goals, the progress we’ve made toward each is staggering. The MDG target of reducing extreme poverty by half has been reached ahead of the deadline, as has the goal of halving the proportion of people who lack access to safe drinking water. 14,000 fewer children around the world are dying every day than in 1990. The number of mothers who die during childbirth has been reduced by almost 50 percent since the goals were set.” Read the letter.http://bit.ly/WPnO6v

EXCLUSIVE: Gabby Giffords will make a surprise appearance at 10 a.m. at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, “What Should America Do About Gun Violence?” Her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, was already scheduled to testify. Now, the former congresswoman will also give an opening statement. The two launched Americans for Responsible Solutions on Jan. 8, the second anniversary of the Tucson shooting. Wayne LaPierre, NRA CEO, also will testify.

TOP TALKER – Mayor Michael “Bloomberg’s Washington footprint explodes,” by Maggie Haberman, Anna Palmer and John Bresnahan: “From guns to gay marriage to immigration to infrastructure — and most recently, in the battle for billions of federal dollars in Hurricane Sandy relief — Bloomberg’s presence in Washington has grown exponentially since 2011. And he has just retained three Republican lobbyists to press Congress on new gun control measures … Armed with his powerful political perch and a massive personal fortune, Bloomberg has employed a repertoire of tactics — his own voice, the city’s lobbying office and lobbying shops hired by coalition groups he has helped create — to move the needle on his issues. [In a lengthy POLITICO interview in his bullpen-style office at City Hall,] Bloomberg described lobbying as helpful but not the be all and end all to achieving change in Washington. ‘It’s a grass-roots push that got Obama to do something’ on guns … ‘Or try the grass-roots push on gay marriage. It got some reporter to ask Joe Biden the right question at the right time when he was loquacious or whatever the word is.’ …

“His most high-profile endeavor — Mayors Against Illegal Guns — and the super PAC he created last year are likely to spend tens of millions of dollars over the next year. And MAIG is bringing on Republican lobbyists to help woo GOP lawmakers skittish about being at odds with the NRA. They include Carl Thorsen of Thorsen French Advocacy, a former counsel to former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay; Jamie Brown Hantman … and Robert H. Marsh … [T]he calls on [Bloomberg] to become a counterweight to the NRA have become deafening … Bloomberg and his allies already have 26 lobbyists at seven firms and the string of nonprofits on retainer, including high-profile Republican figures such as … Haley Barbour and former Rep. Tom Reynolds of New York. Both of their firms were hired … to help push through the Hurricane Sandy aid package that passed Monday. … ‘The mayor of the city of New York gets great visibility,’ Bloomberg said. ‘Being sort of nonpartisan gives you an access to both sides. … I can’t tell you that they all jump when I call. But they do take the call.” http://politi.co/T8WdPI

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THE NEW AGENDA – N.Y. Times 2-col. lead, “President Urges Speed on Immigration Plan, But Exposes Conflicts: Praises Bipartisan Senate Effort, Saying an ‘Emotional’ Debate May Loom,” by Mark Landler in Las Vegas: “Speaking at a high school here in a state that has seen rapid growth in its Hispanic population, the president praised a bipartisan group of senators who proposed their own sweeping immigration overhaul … He said that if Congress did not move forward ‘in a timely fashion’ on its own legislation, he would send up a specific measure … and demand a vote. … Although Mr. Obama did not say it in his speech, the White House is … proposing that the United States treat same-sex couples the same as other families, meaning that people would be able to use their relationship as a basis to obtain a visa —[an] element likely to be resisted by some conservative Republicans.” http://nyti.ms/11cGi1V

--RIGHT SPLITS OVER IMMIGRATION, but opposition is muted-- Dylan Byers: “Limbaugh said Monday that it was ‘up to me and Fox News’ to stop a deal that would provide a path to citizenship to illegal immigrants unless they had been convicted of a major felony … [T]he voices on Fox News have been more nuanced than Limbaugh might like. [Sean] Hannity … opened his show Monday night neither opposing nor supporting the [Senate] plan … [Charles] Krauthammer took a harder line on Fox News, calling the plan ‘highly misleading’ because it would mean ‘instant legalization for 11 million illegal immigrants… the functional equivalent of a green card.’… Glenn Beck … is adamantly opposed. … [Michelle] Malkin … called the Republican senators involved in crafting the plan ‘suicidal’ and ‘self-deluded,’ referring to them as ‘GOP illegal alien amnesty promoters’ and ‘capitulationist Republicans.’ … Rove called the plan ‘a huge step forward because the leadership in the Senate, Republican and Democrat, realized that this could only be done in a bipartisan way.’” http://politi.co/VmTBKE

--WSJ editorial, “Obama's Immigration Principles: Some warning signs about his bipartisan intentions”: “One problem is the lack of any mention of a guest-worker program for new migrants, especially low-skilled workers of the kind who arrive in greater numbers when economic times are good. Mr. Obama sounded good when he talked about providing more visas for high-skilled workers, and we support his call to ‘staple a green card’ to the diplomas of foreign graduates with technical degrees from U.S. universities in engineering, mathematics and the sciences. But the U.S. also needs more legal ways for low-skilled immigrants to enter the country … The biggest mistake of the 1986 Reagan reform was granting citizenship to illegals already here but then providing no legal entry path for future migrants. They came anyway, as they will again without a large and flexible guest-worker provision. The President didn't say he opposes such a program, but the AFL-CIO does.”

TRANSITIONS: Pia Carusone, longtime chief of staff to former Rep. Gabby Giffords, just left her post as Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, to be executive director of the new Giffords PAC, Americans for Responsible Solutions.

TOP-EDS -- JAMES A. BAKER III and REP. JOHN D. DINGELL (D-Mich.), in the NYT, “Bipartisan Hunting Buddies”: “WE are as different as North and South. … We met during the Reagan administration and have often found ourselves on opposite sides of political battles. … We do, however, share some beliefs. … Since we were boys, some of our best times have come with rifles or shotguns in our hands, especially when hunting with our fathers. Jim hunted ducks in the wetlands of southeast Texas and elk in the Rocky Mountains. John hunted small game along the banks of the Detroit River and Lake Erie. As adults, we have hunted together … We’re also united by outrage over the rampage killings … Quite simply, gun violence threatens to overwhelm us. … [A]ny legislation that is suggested should be broad-gauged. … That will mean determining if there is any reason for weapons to have magazines that hold 30 rounds or more. It will mean assessing whether armor-piercing bullets — opposed by police chiefs around the country — should be legal.” http://nyti.ms/11cC61Z

THE NEXT CLIFF – WashPost 2-col. lead, “No deal in sight to stop sequester: DEEP CUTS LIKELY, LAWMAKERS SAY – Little urgency from GOP, financial markets,” by Lori Montgomery, with Paul Kane: “[L]awmakers in both parties predicted that deep, across-the-board spending cuts would probably hit the Pentagon and other federal agencies on March 1. … Adding to the sense of inevitability is the belief that … the sequester … would improve the government’s bottom line without devastating the broader economy. Though the cuts would hamper economic growth, especially in the Washington region, the forecast is far less dire than with other recent fiscal deadlines, and financial markets are not pressing Washington to act. … [L]egions of corporate executives, nonprofit officials, mayors and governors are working the phones and trekking to Capitol Hill in hopes of securing a last-minute deal. Cuts to government contracts have already triggered layoffs, particularly in the defense industry. And agency officials are warning of mass furloughs of government workers that could delay medical research, leave national parks understaffed for the peak vacation season.” http://wapo.st/UBWni1

CABINET 2.0 – Boston Globe A1 above fold, “Kerry sails in Senate voting: Confirmed for State; farewell speech today,” by Christopher Rowland: “The Senate confirmed President Obama’s nomination of Senator John F. Kerry to be secretary of state on Tuesday, handing the Massachusetts Democrat a redemptive career victory that ensconces him in an elite echelon of national leadership nine years after his failed bid for the presidency. The 94-to-3 vote was the final hurdle for Kerry, whose nomination roared through the Senate after Obama’s first choice of UN Ambassador Susan Rice ­encountered stiff GOP opposition and never got off the ground. … The three nay votes … were cast by Republicans Ted Cruz of Texas, John Cornyn of Texas, and James Inhofe of Oklahoma. Kerry abstained. Earlier, Kerry attended his last meeting of the Senate Democratic caucus and spoke in the closed-door luncheon about his hopes to continue working with Congress on the president’s foreign policy goals. … Kerry’s confirmation clears the way for Governor Deval Patrick to name an interim senator to serve in Kerry’s seat until Massachusetts voters can pick a successor in a special election in June. The announcement is expected Wednesday. Kerry’s resignation is effective at 4 p.m. Friday.”

--Secretary “Clinton says goodbye in global TV interview,” by AFP’s Jo Biddle: “Using satellites and the Internet, she hooked into some of the world's major television networks to answer questions from local anchors and audiences in what was billed as a ‘Global Townterview’ by the State Department. Clinton, who has traveled almost a million miles, apparently held 1,700 meetings with world leaders and suffered some 570 airplane meals, never moved from her seat in the Washington-based Newseum during the hour-long interview. It was one of her last public events before she steps down on Friday … On the Middle East peace process, the outgoing secretary of state said she believed the recent election in Israel ‘opens doors, not nails them shut.’ … Later … she did the rounds of the US television networks with back-to-back interviews … There's definitely another memoir in the works, and she promised … she'll keep working for women's rights. … ‘I have absolutely no plans to run,’ she told CNN … … [S]he might work together with the Clinton Global Initiative founded by her husband, … as well as … Chelsea. ‘We're going to look to see how we can join our efforts together.’”

--ANDREA MITCHELL, whose interview with Clinton can be seen at 1 p.m. today on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Report,” asked the secretary how much her personal health would factor into a decision about whether to run for president, with all the flying it entails: “Well, it doesn't factor in at all. … I have no doubt that I am healthy enough, and my stamina is great enough, and I'll be fully recovered to do whatever I choose to do. But I don't have any decisions made. I have no real plans to make any such decisions. I'm looking forward to some very quiet time catching up on everything from sleep, to reading, to walking, with my family. I think it’s hard to imagine for me what it will be like next week when I wake up and I have nowhere to go. Maybe I'll go back to sleep for a change!”

MEDIAWATCH – THIS IS JEFF ZUCKER’S CNN – “Chris Cuomo leaving ABC News for CNN,” by AP Television Writer David Bauder: “Chris Cuomo is leaving ABC News to host a new morning show at CNN, where new boss Jeff Zucker is moving fast to try to turn around the cable news pioneer … Network managing editor Mark Whitaker announced he was quitting Tuesday, officially Zucker's seventh day on the job as CNN Worldwide president. Longtime political consultants and commentators James Carville and Mary Matalin also are leaving. Cuomo is expected to be paired with current evening anchor Erin Burnett in the mornings. CNN said Tuesday it was discussing other job options with Soledad O'Brien, who will be ending her second stint as morning show co-host. … Zucker was the ‘Today’ show executive producer as the show began dominating morning television in the mid-1990s … ABC News [named] David Muir as Elizabeth Vargas' new co-host on [20/20].” http://yhoo.it/Vn0wng

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Authors:

About The Author

Mike Allen is the chief White House correspondent for POLITICO. He comes to us from Time magazine where he was their White House correspondent. Prior to that, Allen spent six years at The Washington Post, where he covered President Bush's first term, Capitol Hill, campaign finance, and the Bush, Gore and Bradley campaigns of 2000. Before turning to national politics, he covered schools and local governments in rural counties outside Fredericksburg, Va., for The Free Lance-Star, then wrote about Doug Wilder, Oliver North, Chuck Robb and the Bobbitts for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, where he nurtured police sources on overnight ride-alongs through housing projects. Allen also covered Mayor Giuliani, the Connecticut statehouse and the wacky rich of Greenwich for The New York Times. Before moving to The Times, he did stints in the Richmond and Alexandria bureaus of The Washington Post. Allen grew up in Orange County, Calif., and has a B.A. from Washington and Lee University, where he majored in politics and journalism.